Grantlea Downs School

Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report

 

Background

This Profile Report was written within 12 months of the Education Review Office and Grantlea Downs School working in Te Ara Huarau, an improvement evaluation approach used in most English Medium State and State Integrated Schools. For more information about Te Ara Huarau see ERO’s website. www.ero.govt.nz

Context 

Grantlea Downs School caters for learners in Years 0 to 8. The school is situated in Timaru and is a member of South Timaru Community of Learning.

Grantlea Downs School’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are:

• increasing teacher capabilities

• enhancing community relationships

• building an explicitly tailored, localized curriculum.

You can find a copy of the school’s strategic and annual plan on Grantlea Downs School’s website.

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate and create a coherent literacy teaching and learning pathway from Years 1 to 8, within a developing localised curriculum.                                           

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is:

• new approaches to teaching literacy were introduced from 2021

• the school’s analysed data shows that the majority of students are well supported to achieve at expected curriculum levels in reading and writing, in relation to age

• it is timely to evaluate the impact of current teaching practices on outcomes for groups of learners who are not achieving to their potential.

The school expects to see literacy programmes positively impacting students’ engagement, achievement and progress. Clear learning pathways will guide teaching expectations from Years 1 to 8. Adaptive and responsive teaching will respond to student voice and choice, fostering meaningful, engaging literacy-learning opportunities. Leaders will embed systems and structures to promote enhanced teaching methods that reflect the school’s vision, “Growing a Community of Learners / He Whakatipu Hapori Akonga”. Parents and whānau will be highly engaged in the literacy focus, with their partnership fostering learner success.

Strengths

The school can draw from the following strengths to support the school in its goal to create a coherent literacy teaching and learning pathway from Years 1 to 8, within a developing localised curriculum:

• some targeted professional development has been undertaken to grow shared understandings of quality teaching practices in literacy

• the school’s values are embedded in the culture of the school, reflected in settled, positive and supportive environments for learning

• a deliberately implemented school-management system supports evidence-based decision making and includes a digital platform for connecting whānau and families with curriculum and learning.

Where to next?

Moving forward, the school will prioritise:

• implementing an evaluation plan that will investigate the impact of current teaching practices on learner success in writing, and identify further opportunities for growth

• using the evaluation to create explicit guidelines for literacy teaching and learning, coherent with the school’s developing localised curriculum

• continuing professional learning for staff with an emphasis on weaving culturally responsive relationships and approaches through teaching and learning, underpinned by Ka Hikitia - Ka Hāpaitia / The Māori Education Strategy.

ERO’s role will be to support the school in its evaluation for improvement cycle to improve outcomes for all learners. ERO will support the school in reporting their progress to the community. The next public report on ERO’s website will be a Te Ara Huarau | School Evaluation Report and is due within three years.

Shelley Booysen
Director Schools

 28 April 2023 

About the School

The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement.  educationcounts.govt.nz/home